Circle House Dormitories, The Lawrenceville School

Mills + Schnoering Associates, LLC principals and staff* completed renovations of The Lawrenceville School's Circle House dormitories. Work was phased over the course of four summers, with one or two houses renovated at a time.

The Circle Houses stand at the core of the 1880s Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Lawrenceville campus. Their original architect, Peabody and Stearns, created six residential scale buildings that now house approximately 35 boys each in addition to two housemasters and their families. The building envelopes, consisting of brick walls, slate roofs, and wood trim, were repaired and restored as part of the project, and define the architectural image of the school.

The work effort addressed life safety and accessibility issues and brought the Houses into compliance with relevant building and fire codes. All existing systems were replaced, including heating, electrical and plumbing. New sprinkler and tel-data systems were installed as well as a new cooling system for the faculty apartments. Work was designed to achieve barrier-free accessibility and increase amenities. All finishes in the public areas, which retained much of their original historic fabric, were restored, and all finishes in the student areas were upgraded.

*working as Ford Farewell Mills & Gatsch Architects, LLC.